Knowing a few planting tips will make growing large, juicy tomatoes simple. However, there are times when the plants we start with don’t look the best. However, be at ease!
Here’s what to do if your seedling tomato plants aren’t growing strong and healthily before you plant them in the ground.
Trick Number 1: Soak Tomato Seedlings
There are a few important steps you need to take before planting tomatoes that can have a big effect on their growth and yield. Soaking the tomato roots in water before planting is the most important thing to do.
The soaking process allows the roots to absorb a significant amount of water, ensuring their optimal hydration prior to planting. Roots that are well-hydrated can be set up quickly and effectively, making it easier for the plant to grow strongly.
Gardeners can use a simple but effective trick to make the tomatoes even healthier and stronger: adding a spoonful of sugar to the water where the tomatoes are soaking.
Sugar provides plants with effortless access to energy, enabling them to swiftly regain their strength during relocation or transplantation. This extra energy gives their bodies a boost, helping them quickly recover and adjust to their new surroundings.
Trick Number 2: Dig a Big Hole
It’s important to carefully prepare the soil by digging a hole that is 25 to 30 centimeters deep before planting your tomato seedlings. This depth ensures the proper placement of the tomato plant by burying a large part of its stem in the soil. By burying about two-thirds of the stem, you’re essentially creating a good environment for roots to grow.
Tomato plants have a unique ability that allows them to grow roots along their stems wherever they touch the ground. This means that by burying a large part of the stem, you’re encouraging the growth of more roots, which will help the plant stay stable and absorb nutrients more effectively.
Furthermore, the more pieces of tomato stem you bury, the greater the chances for roots to develop. As these roots spread out and penetrate deeper into the ground, they create a stronger foundation for the plant, enhancing its ability to absorb water and nutrients from the soil.
Related Article: Put These Things In Planting Holes For The Best Tomatoes Harvest
Trick Number 3: Add Calcium Source In Planting Hole
You can supplement the hole with organic fertilizer before planting tomatoes. However, there is one more crucial item. For tomatoes, this powder is critical; add a spoonful to each hole.
Tomato plants can benefit from adding wood ash or bone meal to the planting hole, which can provide vital nutrients and minerals that aid in the plant’s development and fruit production.
Wood ash is an excellent source of potassium and calcium carbonate, two essential nutrients for tomato plant growth. Its twofold role also includes regulating soil acidity, where it helps to keep the soil at ideal levels while also providing the soil with essential minerals.
One essential nutrient in wood ash is potassium, which plays a major role in the healthy growth of tomatoes by supporting the plant’s general health and vitality and promoting the production of robust fruits.
Bone Meal: When we plant tomatoes, we make sure the soil in the planting hole is well-prepared with bone meal. We make bone meal, a potent natural fertilizer, from ground animal bones.
High amounts of phosphorus, an essential nutrient for promoting strong root growth, are present in its composition. Phosphorus also helps to strengthen the general health of the plant, which promotes an abundance of fruits and flowers.
This necessary component is crucial for transferring energy within the plant and hastening the fruit’s development from formation to ripening.
Related Articles:
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- How To Add Fertilizer To Soil After Planting?
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Blossom end rot is a common source of frustration for tomato growers.
Even though it may appear to be the beginning of some illnesses, the root cause is frequently a plant calcium shortage. This essential nutrient is required for healthy cell structure and function, particularly in fruits like tomatoes that are still growing and developing.
There are several possible causes of this calcium deficiency. A major offender is the soil’s unbalanced pH level. Despite the fact that the soil contains calcium, deficiencies can result from a pH that is too low, which reduces the amount of calcium available for plant roots to absorb.
Environmental stressors like drought or erratic watering schedules can also exacerbate this problem. The plant may find it difficult to absorb calcium during dry spells, which could lead to severe blossom end rot symptoms.
We need to take proactive steps to raise the soil’s calcium levels and encourage fruit development to address this deficiency. For this purpose, a variety of commercial products are available, but many growers prefer natural alternatives because of their effectiveness and sustainability in the environment.
Of these, wood ash and bone meal are particularly effective remedies. Both are rich in calcium and other vital minerals that naturally improve the soil’s nutrient profile.
By improving soil health overall and addressing calcium deficiencies, adding these supplements to the soil creates the ideal environment for healthy tomato growth.
Trick Number 4: DIY Watering System
Tomato plants dislike moisture on their leaves and stems, so it’s crucial to keep that in mind when watering them. In addition, surface irrigation may cause the soil to become compacted and require disturbance.
I employ a specific method to ensure that deeply planted tomatoes receive deep watering. In the ground, I bury a plastic pot or repurposed plastic bottle as close to the tomato plant’s roots as I can, making sure to puncture the bottle.
Pouring water into this container directs the moisture directly toward the root zone. This technique successfully hydrates the deeply rooted plants while maintaining a dry surface for the tomato plants’ foliage and soil.